Acclaimed producer, engineer, singer, songwriter, guitarist and Secret Sound studio owner CHAS SANDFORD is a much-respected veteran in the music business. He’s had the good fortune to work with some of the biggest names in music and now, with the 1/11/11 release of his new--and second--solo album WAG MORE, BARK LESS, he is ready to step back into the artist spotlight. The Atlanta native, who’s lived in Nashville since 1993, produced, engineered and mixed the album, a melodic rock-and-pop mix of electric and acoustic stylings. It is a proudly modern classic-rock album that’s brimming with affecting songs about life, love and loss; SANDFORD vocally gets inside such songs as “Let Love Back In This House,” “Someday Susan,” “My Favorite Regret” and the epic closer “It’s Changing” with plenty of emotional heart and power.
To celebrate the release of WAG MORE, BARK LESS--the long-awaited follow-up to his ‘80s debut album Parallax View (Elektra/Asylum)--SANDFORD will perform a special CD release show 1/11/11 at The Rutledge (410 4th Avenue South, Nashville, TN 37201) beginning at 5:30pm. In addition, SANDFORD will take part in the second annual 30A Songwriters Festival happening January 14-16 on a 13-mile stretch of scenic Highway 30A in Northwest Florida.
With WAG MORE, BARK LESS SANDFORD enlisted the help of his all-star musician friends including bassist Davis Santos (Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young, John Fogerty, Billy Joel, Elton John, Phoebe Snow, James Taylor) and drummer Nick Buda (Taylor Swift, Jewel, Edwin McCain, Mindy Smith, Randy Houser), with cameos by friends and colleagues including Chicago's Bill Champlin and James Matchack, Survivor's Jim Peterik, recording artist/slide guitarist Lee Roy Parnell and singer/songwriter Nicole Witt on background vocals. The entire project was recorded in SANDFORD’s studio, Secret Sound, which has been used by some of the world's top recording artists including Keith Urban, Tim McGraw, Melissa Etheridge, Public Image Ltd, Queen, Def Leppard, Tony Bennett and so many others.
For SANDFORD, WAG MORE, BARK LESS serves as a personal renewal, taking his past experiences, and moving on to the next level, with a flow and feel, from beginning to end, that makes it sound like albums did in the classic rock era.
“The world seems to be in real upheaval right now,” says SANDFORD. “This feels right. Everyone’s looking for material with more depth. They’re tired of the way things are going. It’s a perfect time for me to be doing this.”
